After Rovers exited the FA Cup at the hands of Hull City, following a 1-0 defeat to the Tigers at Ewood Park, Tony Mowbray spoke to the clubs’ media team and summed up the performance that his players put in.
“I’m not frustrated with the fact that we didn’t get a replay, despite the chances we had, because I didn’t want a replay in the first place. Saying that, I thought we did enough to score a goal, especially with Bradley (Dack) and Danny (Graham) coming onto the pitch, which helped swing the balance of the game in our favour. After a good opening ten minutes, where we created opportunities, it was pretty difficult for a lot of the first-half and for the start of the second as you could see the quality they had on the pitch. We’re disappointed that we didn’t manage to score, but we’re not disappointed with the fact there’s no replay as our only goal is to try and get out of League One, which we continue with, with a tie next week against Shrewsbury Town.
“I’m not sure how many clear-cut chances they had, and yet when I was watching them in the build-up to this game, they could have easily beaten Derby County and Leeds United who they played before us, because their build-up play was very good, yet they weren’t able to score in those games and they didn’t look like they were going to score today, if I’m being honest. It’s frustrating for us that we’ve conceded another set-play to go out of the competition, but I thought the last half-an-hour was very positive as we pushed the players forwards to try and get an equaliser, and the ball stuck in Hull’s half. It wasn’t to be today, unfortunately, but I’m not too disheartened as we’ve got 21 cup finals to play in the league.
“The disappointing thing from today was the fact that we picked up another injury, this time to Corry Evans. Corry came off with a tight thigh, so hopefully it doesn’t keep him out for long. Although Evans got injured, one positive aspect from today was Lewis Travis’ performance. He came on today and looked like an experienced player with the way he controlled the ball, he was aggressive and was in the right place at the right time. Hopefully all the young lads that played today would have gained a lot. I don’t know what the attendance for today was, but the game had a different feel to it today, as the fans, during league games play a big part in the sides’ performances.
“I thought Ryan Nyambe did alright at centre-half today. With me being a former centre-back, I can always see his flaws or when he’s made a mistake, yet he was put there because of their mobility at the top-end of the field, and he caused them some problems with his pace.”
The gaffer was asked about the upcoming clash at home to 2nd placed Shrewsbury Town, and how a weeks’ worth of rest will help the players both physically and mentally.
“There’s no real break for the players as they’ll be training and preparing for the game. We know what we’ve got left this season and every game is massive for us, no bigger than the game against Shrewsbury. Now will also be the right time to strengthen the group with additions, but like I’ve said, it’s not easy, yet hopefully we’ll emerge from the transfer window stronger than we were when we entered it. For me, it doesn’t matter if we get someone in before next weekend, as long as we come out of the window stronger. I’ve told the players that I’m not bringing people in to replace them, because they’ve got us to where we are in the league, yet I’m trying to bring people in to help the squad if and when injuries come along.”
